Infidelity
by 4th of Eleven
Summary: fShepard is feeling lonely and finds comfort in Aria's arms.


Title: Infidelity  
Fandom: Mass Effect  
Categories: fShepard/Aria, mentions of fShepard/Liara  
Disclaimer: Mass Effect and all characters, locations, ect. remain the property of BioWare. No copyright infringement is intended.  
Summary: fShepard is feeling lonely and finds comfort in Aria's arms. Originally written for the ME kinkmeme.

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Shepard quietly sipped a drink, barely hearing the din of Afterlife behind her. She leaned forward, watching the Asari dancer, following the movements of her body with her eyes, staring at the dancer's deep blue thighs and hands, frustrated longing overwhelming her. Shepard sighed as the dancer smiled at her. Normandy had been docked at Omega almost a week now, refuelling and resupplying. She'd sworn to herself she wouldn't go back to Afterlife, she wouldn't spend another evening watching some stripper's ass. It hadn't worked. She'd just ended up pacing around her cabin, staring angrily at the photo on her desk, before finally giving in.

At least all I do is watch, she told herself. It would be so easy to quietly slip the dancer just a little more money, follow her to a back room and-

God, she missed Liara. It was stupid – they'd known each other, what, a few weeks? One night together. But, damn, what a night. She smiled sadly to herself, remembering the feel of her smooth skin as they lay together, the alien woman's cooler body warming as she held her, the odd smell of alien sweat. And then Liara's hands running along her face, the strange crawling sensation running down her spine that became almost achingly pleasurable as she realised that their minds were linking, memories and emotions reflected perfectly. Connecting with another person so perfectly, a brief moment of total intimacy.

She'd never seen the appeal of Asari until she'd met Liara, never even considered a relationship with an alien. Now she couldn't imagine going the rest of her life without that feeling again. Familiar anger rose to the surface as she remembered the first time she'd seen Liara since her resurrection, that one hesitant kiss before her cool professional shell slid back into place. God knows, it must have been a shock to see me again, Shepard thought, but I've given her time. She hasn't even contacted me. If she'd just tell me it was over, I could accept that. But to just leave me hanging like this.. did it mean so little to her she doesn't think she even needs to tell me she's moved on?

"Funny how this place clears out when there's a Spectre here."

Shepard blinked, startled by the voice interrupting her thoughts.

"I haven't had an evening this quiet in years." Aria said, taking a seat next to Shepard. Shepard nodded, still watching the Asari dancer.

"Relationship problems?" Aria asked, a thin smile on her lips as she saw Shepard's look of surprise. "I didn't get where I was without being able to read people. Which is it, just broke up, or just decided to?"

"None of your business." Shepard replied automatically.

"Everything's my business." Aria laughed. "My advice? If you've reached the point you're spending hours staring at one of my girls drowning your sorrows, the only thing left to do is admit to yourself the relationship's over."

Shepard turned away from the dancer, and glared at Aria. She stared back calmly. Finally, Shepard sighed.

"You're probably right." She said. She is right, she privately conceded, and this isn't healthy. Staring at dancers, wishing they were Liara. If she's moved on, I need to accept that and get on with my own life. I'm acting like a love-struck teenager, moping about like this. Maybe I should just bite the bullet, hire a dancer for a night. Do something to forget about her. There was a sick feeling in her gut as she slowly started to accept just how much she'd given up on ever working things out with Liara.

"Took care of a few people on my payroll who were forwarding information to the Blue Suns." Aria said, breaking the silence. "Idiots thought Tarak had a chance of taking over and they'd get some big reward. Wouldn't have known to look if you hadn't forwarded that datapad to me. I owe you a small favour, Shepard."

"Doesn't it bother you?" Shepard asked. "Always having to keep an eye over your shoulder?"

"It's been a long time since anyone's been stupid enough to challenge me." Aria shrugged. "Idiots like Tarak might come up with plans to take over, but if you hadn't taken him out, someone else would have. Omega needs me to function – and anyone smart enough to really challenge me knows it."

"But it still must bother you. Not trusting anyone around you." Shepard said, and Aria's eyes narrowed.

"I'm not a child, Shepard. Nobody survives long by trusting people. I suppose it's different for humans. You all die so young, maybe you can trust people without it being a guarantee that eventually they'll hurt you." Aria narrowed her eyes, staring perceptively at Shepard. "Or maybe not."

It's funny, Shepard thought, talking to a woman like this. She's been queen of Omega for longer than humans have had space-flight. She should be the last person I should be open with – the last person anyone should be open with. But who else can I talk to? Cerberus has poisoned my reputation with everyone I used to be able to talk to, and I'm sure as hell not confiding in any of their people. Especially that damned counsellor of theirs. There's Garrus, I suppose – but, God, he doesn't need to be burdened with any of my problems on top of his own.

"There's this woman." Shepard finally murmured, slowly telling the Asari about Liara. It was weirdly liberating to talk to her, knowing the Asari would keep her judgements to herself. I don't care about any of her secrets, and my personal life's one of the few things she doesn't have a vested interest in around here. And she's a good listener. Hell, she has to be in her line of work.

Quietly, Aria dismissed the dancer, and with a hesitance that seemed so strange from the confident alien woman, began to talk herself, discussing problems she'd been having, betrayals and double-crosses she'd had to deal with. Shepard didn't know who half the people she was talking about were, didn't know if these were recent incidents or stories from centuries ago. Doesn't matter, she thought, she just wants to talk to someone. There's not many people around her who aren't looking to take advantage of anything she tells them.

Aria gestured for the bartender to bring over another couple of drinks as Shepard started telling an old story from her time at the academy. The Asari smiled at the punch line, her laughter oddly soft, and for a moment she looked much younger. When she relaxes a little, she looks completely different, Shepard thought briefly. She looks so much better when she's not frowning at everything around her. What was she like when she was young, when she wasn't suspicious of everyone around her?

I haven't had a relaxed evening like this with anyone in a long time, Shepard thought, sipping a bitter-tasting Drell wine Aria had recommended. Not since – hell, probably not since before the order came in to report to the old Normandy. Even with Liara, all I ever had was a few stolen moments between crises. I don't think I ever even just sat down and had a drink with her. She blinked, feeling slightly dizzy. How much have I had to drink, anyway?

"I have something you might be interested in." Aria was saying, and Shepard realised she'd lost track of the conversation. There was an odd tight feeling in her chest as she realised Aria was gesturing for her to follow her as she got up, heading to one of the back rooms away from the public areas of Afterlife. Disjointed thoughts of what the crime lord might want ran through her head, and Shepard swallowed, her mouth suddenly dry. She is attractive in a harsh way, she thought suddenly, and there's something so intriguingly interesting about her.

And she's nothing like Liara, Shepard realised, feeling an odd satisfaction at the thought.

Aria's room was barely any bigger than Shepard's own quarters on the Normandy. Shepard glanced briefly at the handful of small decorations tastefully arranged on a single shelf, wondering how these Spartan surroundings could belong to the decadently ostentatious mistress of Omega. This is a bad idea, a small sober part of Shepard thought, as impulsively she moved towards her, kneeling as she leaned in for a kiss.

Aria tensed, and for a moment Shepard felt the faint electric feeling of a biotic field forming around the other woman's body before it faded. Aria smiled thinly. "Why not?" She said, grabbing Shepard in an embrace.

Shepard let Aria lead her over to the bed in the corner of the room, thinking it had been a long time since she'd let a partner lead her around like this. With Liara, she'd been unsure what to do, but the young Asari had been so nervous- Stop thinking about her, she chided herself, as Aria quickly stripped her. She's the first person to see me naked since Cerberus rebuilt me, Shepard thought briefly, suddenly self-conscious of the network of thin scars criss-crossing her body.

There was a distant look on Aria's face as Shepard struggled to undo her clothing, and she wondered what the Asari was thinking. She felt the cool touch of her fingers on her body as she finally removed Aria's flamboyant outfit, desire running over her as she saw the other woman's hard body, her small breasts with deep indigo nipples. She frowned, seeing a jagged scar running down her right thigh.

"Old lover's legacy." Aria said, offering no further explanation, a bright look in her eyes as her gaze roved over Shepard's body. God, I needed this, she thought, as Aria pulled her towards her. I've needed someone to look at me like that again, and someone who understands what it's like not to have anyone you can rely on. Right now, I don't want love, I don't want a relationship, I just want understanding and relief.

Aria T'Loak, she thought distantly, concious thoughts fading as Aria's hands ran over her, roving, searching, teasing as they moved. Queen of Omega. How many people does she invite back here? Doesn't matter. I don't want any more from this than what she's giving. She gasped as a finger suddenly slid inside her, running her own hands across Aria's body in the way she remembered Liara had enjoyed, gratified to see a bright look of satisfaction in the old Asari's eyes.

There was no hesitation or self-consciousness in Aria's movements, and Shepard found herself growing bolder in response. The smell and taste of her skin was intoxicatingly familiar, and Shepard found herself thinking again of Liara, a familiar longing washing over her.

"Please." She finally whispered to Aria, staring up into her cool dark eyes. "I want you in my mind."

There was a flicker of surprise on Aria's face, her expression showing more nervousness than Shepard would have believed her capable of. "Been a long time." She murmured to herself. "Maybe…"

She trailed off, then suddenly grasped Shepard's hands, staring into her eyes. Shepard shivered as she felt a tingling in her arms, a cold sensation running down her body-

She knew Aria was intentionally holding back, minimising the contact between them. It didn't matter, she could still feel the desire running through Aria's body as if it were her own, the odd mirrored sensation of feeling her own body pressed against Aria from the Asari's point of view as well as her own, the faint hint of buried thoughts behind the veil of the other woman's mind. There was a sense of dizziness as she saw herself briefly through alien eyes and the comforting presence of another mind in her thoughts.

"Liara." She whispered, forgetting for a moment where she was. An odd thought flickered at the edge of her mind, and it took her a moment it was coming from Aria.

"She's making a mistake keeping you at an arm's length." Aria murmured, a distant look on her face. "You should tell her that."

She caught a hint of hidden emotion behind Aria's words before the other woman abruptly broke the meld. As she felt the alien thoughts in her mind fade, she sensed a brief flicker of embarrassment from Aria at letting someone see a vulnerability.

"A mistake you made once?" Shepard asked.

"Don't be stupid." Aria replied automatically, her usual expression of cold contempt falling into place, but there was an odd look in her eyes as she spoke again. "But you should see her again. You people don't live long enough for mistakes. And she's too young to live with one the rest of her life."


End file.
